Ingrid Lorraine Potgieter

Personality and Psycho-Social Employability Attributes as Meta-capacities for Sustained Employability

More and more researchers currently working and studying in the field of career development suggest that individuals need to be more conscious of their work-related capability and career meta-competencies or psychological career resources (Baruch, Career Development International,9:58–73, 2004; Blickle and Witzki, Society and Business Review,3:149–161, 2008; Coetzee, South African Journal of Industrial Psychology,34:32–41, 2008; Hess et al., Journal of Vocational Behavior,10, 2011; Hoekstra, Journal of Vocational Behavior,78:159–173, 2011; Puffer, Journal of Career Assessment,19:130–150, 2011; Savickas and Porfeli, Journal of Vocational Behavior,80:661–673, 2012) . In the context of this chapter, the term “career meta-competencies” refers to a set of psychological career resources which are critical in career development. Psychological career resources include personal attributes and abilities such as behavioral adaptability, self-knowledge, career orientation awareness, sense of purpose, self-esteem and emotional literacy, which allow individuals to be self-sufficient learners and to manage their own careers in a businesslike manner (Briscoe and Hall, Organisational Dynamics,28:37–52, 1999; Coetzee, South African Journal of Industrial Psychology,34:32–41, 2008; Coetzee and Roythorne-Jacobs, Career counselling and guidance in the workplace: A manual for career practitioners, 2nd edn., 2012; Hall and Chandler, Journal of Organizational Behaviour,26:155–176, 2005; Herr et al., Career guidance and counselling through the lfespan, 2004) . People who possess a wide range of psychological career resources are generally better able to adapt to changing career circumstances and tend to demonstrate higher levels of employability (Fugate et al., Journal of Vocational Behaviour,65:14–38, 2004; Griffen and Hesketh, Australian Journal of Psychology,55:65–73, 2005) . Zinser (Journal of Vocational Behaviour,65:14–38, 2003) states that employability attributes include a range of personality attributes as well as work-related skills. Personality attributes generally include displaying emotional intelligence, high levels of self-esteem and self-confidence, personality preferences and proactive career-related behavioral attributes (Potgieter, The development of a career meta-competency model for sustained employability, 2012) . This chapter discusses a psychological profile constituting the psychological career meta-competencies and attributes required for sustaining employability in a more turbulent and uncertain occupational world.

Employability capacities and organisational commitment foci of human resource professionals: An exploratory study

This study explored the relationship between employees’ employability capacities and their organisational commitment foci. A convenience sample of 196 South African human resource professionals participated in the study, consisting of 73% females and 88% black African people, predominantly within their early career stages (aged > 45 years). Data on individuals’ employability capacities and organisational commitment were collected via questionnaires. Canonical correlation analysis (CCA) was performed to assess the association between the variables of employability capacities and organisational commitment foci. Participants’ lifelong learning capacities (goal-directed behaviour and continuous learning orientation) were positively associated with their career commitment. This finding suggests that a strong lifelong orientation is likely to increase involvement in one’s occupation within the organisation, which contributes to organisational commitment. Lifelong learning capacities appear important to human resource professionals’ career development within their employer organisation.

Moderating role of affectivity in career resilience and career anchors.

This study explored the moderating role of positive affect and negative affect in the link between employees’ career resilience and their career anchors . A convenience sample (N=143) of predominantly black African people (86%) and staff level (80%) employees with more than 10 years of service (60%) participated in the study (mean age: 41 years; men: 52%; women: 48%) . Correlational analysis showed significant associations between the variables . Hierarchical moderated regression analysis indicated low positive affect as a significant moderator of the career resilience-managerial competence career anchor relationship . High negative affect and low negative affect significantly weakened the career resilience-entrepreneurial creativity, career resilience-pure challenge and career resilience-lifestyle relationships . The findings add new insights that may be useful for career development support programmes in the contemporary workplace .

Self-esteem, employability attributes, and retention factors of employees within the financial sector

This study explored the relationship between personal factors and job retention in a South African financial services sector setting. A non-probability purposive sample of employees (n = 383; females = 57%, black = 42%) of two financial institutions were participants (age range = 25 to 65; middle management = 34%). The employees reported on their self-esteem, employability attributes, and job retention factors. The data were analysed to predict job retention factors from the personal factors of self-esteem and employability. The results indicate overall self-esteem, employability attributes, and age to significantly and positively predict job retention factors of employees within the financial services industry. The self-esteem psychological aspects of general self-esteem, social self-esteem, and personal self-esteem, uniquely predicted job retention factors. Additionally, the employability attributes of career self-management, cultural competence, self-efficacy career resilience, sociability, entrepreneurial orientation, proactivity, and emotional literacy uniquely predicted job retention factors.

Personality preference facets and self-regulatory employability of human resource professionals.

Scholars interested in investigating the career well-being of employees have reported that employability includes a number of person-centred constructs needed to deal effectively with career-related changes in today’s economy. This study explored the relationship between employees’ self-regulatory employability skills and personality preference facets. A convenience sample (N = 196) of predominantly female (73%), Black African people (88%) in the early stages of their careers (80% < 45 years) participated in the study. A cross-sectional, quantitative research design approach was followed. Descriptive statistics, Pearson product–moment correlations, and canonical correlation analysis were performed to achieve the objective of this study. The results yielded significant associations between the variables. The findings add new insights that may be useful for theoretical views on the personality preference facets underpinning employees’ self-regulatory employability skills.

Personal Attributes Framework for Talent Retention

The 21st century world of work is characterised by exceptional levels of talent mobility as employees try to satisfy their own requirements, with a resultant growing concern among organisations about the retention of talented employees. Organisations in the 21st-century workplace are increasingly realising that employees are their most valuable asset, and as a result they are constantly trying to create an employment brand that is attractive to both existing employees and potential talent, while competing in a “war for talent”. Recent research emphasised that it is not only monetary awards or stability that influences an individuals’ decision to remain with an organisation, but that several personal attributes also play a role in the retention of valuable employees. These personal attributes include self-esteem, employability attributes, organisational commitment and career adaptability. Based on the relationship found between these personal attributes and retention, human resource practitioners and industrial psychologists should utilise interventions to assist individuals to enhance their personal attributes in order to enhance their intention to stay.

Career-related dispositional factors in relation to retention within the retail sector: An exploratory study

The study aimed to explore the extent to which employees’ organisational commitment and career adaptability predicted employee retention factors in the South African retail sector; taking employee demographics into account. A sample of 224 early to mid-career permanent retail employees participated in the study (single = 51.3%; female = 53.1%; mixed-race = 50.9%). The participants responded to surveys on their organisational commitment, career adaptability, and retention factors. A stepwise regression analysis was computed to predict employee retention factors from their organisational commitment and career adaptability. Results suggested the organisational commitment and career adaptability to explain 16% of the variance in employee retention factors. Of the organisation commitment factors, affective commitment was the most predictive of employee retention; followed by normative commitment. The career adaptability factor of curiosity predicted work-life balance. Talent retention in the retail sector appears to be explained by organisational commitment factors relatively more so than by career adaptability factors.